Conditional disqualification and a serious fine: how the ATP punished Zverev for the incident with the judge in Acapulco

“If the conditions are met, the penalties will be lifted”

On Monday, the scandalous story with Alexander Zverev came to an end, who at the end of February at a tournament in Acapulco allowed himself to hit the racquet on the referee's tower and shouted at the referee.

The Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) considered the behavior of the German and made a rather tough but fair decision.

The organization ruled that he had committed an aggravated offense and, in accordance with ATP rules, issued the athlete an additional fine of $ 25 thousand and disqualified him for eight weeks.

It is noted that he allowed aggressive behavior towards the official, as well as "verbal or physical abuse."

However, the punishment is conditional.

Sanctions will be imposed if a player violates the code again during a one-year trial period.

Immediately after the incident in Acapulco, Zverev was removed from the tournament.

He also paid a $40,000 fine in total for verbal abuse and unsportsmanlike conduct.

Plus, the German lost $31,570 in prize money in singles and doubles and all ATP ranking points scored in the competition.

"He should have been suspended for four weeks"

Lost nerves from a tennis player during a doubles match.

In Spain, he performed in a duet with Marcelo Melo and lost to Lloyd Glasspool and Harry Helievaara - 2:6, 6:4, 6:10.

The German had claims against the referee during the decisive tie-break, when it seemed to him that the referee did not notice the opponent's out at the reception.

From the requirements to watch a replay of the episode, Zverev quickly moved on to insults.

He began to accuse the referee of not controlling the back line and immediately received a warning.

And at the end of the meeting, the annoyed Alexander went up to the referee's tower and, in anger, hit it three times with a racket, almost hitting the legs of the man sitting upstairs.

At the same time, he continued to shout loudly at the referee and complained that he allegedly ruined the whole game.

The reaction of the organizers was lightning fast.

Within just a couple of hours, Zverev was disqualified and removed from the meeting of the second round of singles with compatriot Peter Goyovchik.

Realizing that he went too far, the tennis player tried to make amends and posted an appeal on Instagram.

In it, he called his behavior wrong and unacceptable, and also apologized to the judge and the fans.

“As you know, I leave everything on the court.

Yesterday I left too much.

In the coming days, I will think about my actions and how I can ensure that this does not happen again.

I'm sorry I let you down," Zverev promised.

The act of the German among his colleagues was perceived ambiguously, but the majority spoke with words of careful support.

So, for example, did Novak Djokovic.

“I watched the video and saw Sasha's statement.

In it, he said everything that is needed.

He understands that he made a mistake, ”the Serb emphasized.

Daniil Medvedev spoke in a similar vein.

According to the Russian, Zverev, although he did the wrong thing, suffered punishment for his mistake.

After that, it is important that Alexander learn a lesson from her.

Rafael Nadal called the suspension of the guilty athlete deserved and stressed that it was impossible to behave in this way.

In turn, the former first racket of the planet Serena Williams accused tennis officials of double standards, since at one time she was also conditionally disqualified for much less serious sins.

“You notice the double standard when something happens on tour and you think, 'Wait, what if I did this'?

But it's all right.

In the end, I am who I am, and I love myself for who I am, ”said the American.

But the former referee and ATP supervisor Richard Ings spoke out harshest of all, who said that Zverev should have been given a real, not a suspended sentence.

“I held the same position as Miro Bratoev, in which I had to make similar decisions in similar conditions.

And my professional opinion: he should have been disqualified for four weeks, because I have never seen a more outrageous attack on a judge, ”the specialist emphasized.

One way or another, what happened will secure the glory of one of the most difficult tennis players on the planet for Zverev, since this scandal was far from the first with his participation.

For example, in 2020, a German was accused of domestic violence.

On one day, two of his ex-girlfriends immediately told about the difficult nature of the athlete.

Russian model Olga Sharypova complained that Alexander hit her head against the wall and choked her.

And another ex-passion, Brenda Patea, accused the young man of leaving her pregnant.

“Tennis players should not behave like this”

To understand whether the ATP was adequately punished for the behavior of the German, RT turned to experts.

According to former Russian tennis player Andrey Chesnokov, the organization did absolutely the right thing in this case.

“The main thing is that Zverev was left with the opportunity to go to court.

If he again does not restrain his emotions, he will answer in full.

Therefore, I am sure that now Alexander will behave as carefully as possible.

Here you can put yourself in the shoes of tournament sponsors.

Imagine, you invest in a competition, and then one of the strongest players on the planet is disqualified.

In this case, you will suffer serious financial losses.

Therefore, it is more logical to fine the German for a large amount.

Therefore, I advocate that he play, and not sit for several months, ”Chesnokov emphasized.

At the same time, he does not consider Zverev's act to be something terrible, since he, having hit the referee's stand, did not injure anyone.

“If he had thrown a racket and crushed someone's head, the conversation would have been different.

Take hockey as an example.

There, people fight several times a match, and no one is worried about it.

And imagine what would happen if a tennis player started to beat up an opponent and received only a two-minute penalty for this, ”added Chesnokov.

In turn, the well-known coach Boris Sobkin agreed that the ATP, having punished the violator conditionally, acted reasonably.

“The fact is that Zverev is now under the hood.

No one has yet forgotten the story of the beating of a girl by him.

I think, on the example of Alexander, tennis officials have demonstrated intransigence towards this kind of thing.

On the one hand, he was allowed to play, on the other hand, he was fined a decent amount and issued a serious warning, ”the specialist noted.

However, he considered the very behavior of the athlete absolutely unacceptable at such a high level.

“Rackets break everything.

Everyone throws balls to the side.

Shout everything.

But hitting the judge's tower is too much.

It is unacceptable for tennis players to behave like this.

There are methods developed by psychologists for the release of emotions.

They are completely legal and do not lead to complications.

And what Zverev does is beyond.

Most athletes do not allow themselves this, ”summed up Sobkin.